Define the Great Line
by DiscoUnicorn
Summary: These are short stories written about Yoruichi. She'll be paired with several different people as the chapters aren't linked.
1. In Regards to Myself

This is a collection of eleven stories involving Yoruichi. Some of them may be linked; some of them may not be. YoruichiXwhomeverIchoose The titles are related the story. Titles taken from Underoath's Define the Great Line album (excellent cd, by the way).

The world was a place where people were born in specific houses and leagues so they could show the people below them the right path. Yoruichi had been blessed enough to be born into a house of one of the greatest nobles families in Seireitei. Her best friend, a blond boy with gray eyes, came from a district in rukongai. She'd met him the one time she'd actually managed to run away from her parents during one of their little tours. Tours? She would chuckle at the thought, but what were they really? Rides through the rough parts of the spirit world so they could ease the pain of anyone they saw. Yoruichi had slipped out of her cart without being noticed by the men carrying her. She ran into Kisuke in an alley where he sat alone with angry eyes and dirty hair.

"Who are you?" Her voice was soft. For some odd reason, she felt sorry for the boy.

He turned his gaze to her and grew angrier when he saw the pretty kimono she wore. He looked away with a frown on his small face. He was the son of a poor farmer. "Kisuke."

Yoruichi pulled a thick black ribbon from her hair and held it out towards the boy with a smile. "Your face is dirty."

He didn't move. The wind picked up considerably and knocked the girl's hair down until it was to her knees. His eyes slowly moved up over the thick purple locks until his eyes met hers. Golden eyes? She had eyes like a cat. He smiled at the idea and said, "My cat had eyes like that."

Her hand moved closer to him until the ribbon was an inch from his small nose. He turned away from her to stare at the wall of the building behind her. She angrily wiped the side of his face and jumped away when he made a swipe for her. A deep laugh escaped her throat as she chased her through the alley and down the street. He caught her near the gate that led to the next district. His arm wrapped tightly around her waist as he pulled her away from the thick wooden gate.

"Bad people live through there." His voice was low. He let go of her when he realized where his arm was.

Yoruichi glared at him before slamming the ribbon into his face and wiping it clean. She draped it neatly over his shoulder and walked away with her arms folded over her chest. "I don't need your help." She turned to him in surprise when she heard the loud growl coming from his stomach. Everyone had told her souls rarely got hungry unless they held some type of reiatsu. She took a silver comb from her hair and shoved it into his hands gently.

"What am I spose to do with this? My hair is so tangled it will break."

"Trade it for food."

Kisuke raised his eyebrows in surprise. The girl had to have ears like a cat if she'd heard his stomach growling. He stared down at the comb and held it out to her. "I don't need it." He jumped at her when she tried to run away. After pushing the comb back into her smooth purple hair, he stared at her incredulously. Why did people in rukongai think people from Seireitei were so bad when here was a girl trying to get rid of one of her expensive combs just so he could get something to eat? He narrowed his eyes at her. What exactly was she doing there anyway?

Yoruichi mumbled something he could not understand and turned towards the sound of approaching voices. She glanced back at the boy standing behind her dressed in blue. Her golden eyes looked at the sky before falling on the servants carrying the cart containing her father. She could see the family crest on the front. They stopped and sat the cart down before stepping away.

Her father stepped out of the cart with his dark eyebrows pressed together. Her mother remained inside of her own cart silently, probably watching the commotion with a frown. Her father was a tall man with dark brown skin like hers and black hair. He had golden eyes and wore a black kimono with a sword at his side. He stared at his disheveled daughter then the dirty boy standing behind her.

"Yoruichi, where did you go?" His voice was deep and made Kisuke think of a church bell.

"I fell off the cart and when I woke up the only person I found was this boy. He was helping me find you until a man chased us this way. I lost my ribbon." She covered her face with her hands in feigned shame.

Her father's large hand landed on her shoulder gently. He coaxed her to be quiet. His attention turned to the boy in front of him. "Thank you for helping my daughter. You're invited to our house for dinner." The man laughed before shaking his head. "Sorry, would you like something?"

"Father, he is hungry. Doesn't that mean he has reiatsu? Can he go to school with me? Please." Yoruichi gave her father that smile she knew he couldn't refuse. How lucky was it for Kisuke that she had run into him? She turned back to the boy staring at them stupidly.

"Well, getting him into school will be easy. Done. Come…"

"Kisuke, papa, his name is Kisuke. He can ride with me!"

Her father nodded before walking away and getting into his own cart. When he called her name, Yoruichi knew it was time to leave. She grabbed Kisuke's wrist, disregarding his fruitless protests, and yanked him after her. After throwing him into her cart, she climbed in beside him. Her golden eyes remained glued on the scroll with poetry written on it she had pinned to the inside of her cart. Kisuke's mouth fell open as his eyes traveled from scroll to scroll. He had never been inside a place such as that. In the confined area, he could smell the soft scent of jasmine coming from her. He frowned deeply and turned to the wall on his right.

After hours of silence, Yoruichi was more than happy to get out of the cart with her boring new friend. She walked into the house slowly, making sure he was within close proximity. After listening to her father tell the servant standing at the stairs to wash the boy, she pranced into the sitting room. Her mother sat on a deep red couch with her hands folded neatly on her lap. Yoruichi skillfully folded her hair back atop her head as she sat down across from her mother.

"That was a wonderful tale you weaved for your father," the woman said with a smile. Her smile widened when her daughter stared at her with wide eyes. "I was your age once, I know how these things work. Let's see…" her voice trailed off as she was deep in thought. Her index finger tapped her chin every ten seconds. "Ahhh. You jumped out the cart and ran away. You did get lost, but the boy actually was alone and you wanted to help him. He probably ran from you until he got to that gate where we found you. You used your ribbon to clean his face."

Yoruichi smiled widely as the hazel-eyed woman beaming at her. She nodded quickly and whispered, "His stomach was so loud."

"Everything is loud to you, dear." The woman tapped her finger on her knee. "You know he can't stay here."

"I know. Father said he would help him get into school."

"He's very lucky to have met you. Less than fifty children attend the early schools."

"Mama, do you think father knows?" Yoruichi's eyes darted to the man standing in the foyer with a letter in his hand. She looked at her mother with raised eyebrows.

"He's your father. Of course he knows, dear." She flattened a hump in her kimono as she stood. Her husband walked into the room with a large smile on his face. "You sent the letter that fast?"

"Wanted to make sure the boy got in." He looked at Yoruichi and smiled. "He will be very special if Yoruichi-chan was willing to lie to me just so I could help him."

Yoruichi blushed before sliding off the couch and running into a hug her father offered her. She had never chosen a person for them to help; so, her father did not question her decision. She inhaled the sweet scent of spices in his kimono before letting go of him. Her father's lips were soft against her skin when he kissed her on the cheek. She watched him leave in silence. Her mother touched her shoulder gently as she walked by. She walked into the foyer and stared out one of the windows into the street.

Sometimes, she felt so alone sitting in the house with her parents. It would be nice for her to have someone close to her own age, even if the difference was probably only a year, to play with. She would finally have someone at school that didn't look at her with envious eyes. They didn't have to know the real reason she wanted Kisuke to go to school with her. They didn't have to know that she didn't have any friends at that wretched place they sent her every fall.

"Is this supposed to fit like this? The pants are kind of tight." Kisuke walked down the steps tugging at the black belt accompanying the ninja suit he wore. "This is nice."

"That is mine. Papa just bought those for me. Did Jakina put you in that?" Yoruichi asked with a slight hint of anger in her voice. She was about to run up the stairs to give the servant a piece of her mind when Kisuke grabbed her arm.

"Hey, where are you going all mad? It was the only thing I could find that didn't smell like jasmine or wasn't made from silk." His hands fell to his side. A rather loud sigh of frustration escaped him. "I'll go change into one of your black silk kimonos."

"No!" Yoruichi shouted. She stared at him in shock then burst in loud laughter. The image of Kisuke in a black kimono with butterflies on it danced through her head. "No, but the white suit will fit you better. Come." She led him up the stairs quietly and gave him the only white suit she had in the dressing closet. She waited outside quietly.

"That's a lot better. Thank you." He wore a pair of her wooden sandals. His shoulders rose at the gaze she directed at him. "They were the only ones I found comfortable. Plus, it was either these of the ones with the green flowers painted on them."

Yoruichi laughed again. "Father won't like you in those sandals. He'll probably get you shoes like him."

"I like these."

Yoruichi nodded thoughtfully before motioning for him to follow her down the stairs. She said something about the haircut Jakina had given him. They both laughed. The woman cut the boy's hair until it was ear length. He looked like a puffy haired sweet Yoruichi had eaten the day before. Before they walked into the dining area to sit with her parents who were already at the table and engaged in deep conversation, Kisuke gently touched Yoruichi's elbow. He laughed nervously at the expression she wore when she turned to him. "Why did you do this for me?"

Yoruichi frowned and pressed her hand against her lips. She raised her chin indignantly. "What makes you think you are so special?"


	2. A Moment Suspended in Time

Their classmates talked about them a lot. Yoruichi took whatever anyone said about her in strides. She liked to think that some day the world would become a better place where a man and woman could live together in harmony or hang around one another without others whispering rude things behind their backs. If only one of them would say some of those dirty things to her face, she would annihilate them. Then, the rumors would melt away into nothing. Her golden eyes stared at a wall carelessly as she realized she felt nothing but anger towards whoever spread such bologna about one of her best friends. Her long legs stretched out in front of her, crossed at the ankle, as she lounged on against a large tree. Kisuke sat to her right; Jushiro to her left; Kyoraku sat in front of her.

Kisuke fumbled with a bottle of ink Yoruichi had given him the day before for his birthday. The determined look on his face made Jushiro raise his eyebrows at the dark girl sitting with them. She rolled her eyes and took the bottle from her clumsy friend. He might be the smartest person in the school, but he couldn't open a bottle of ink? She hesitated at opening the ink when she saw what he was about to do with it. Only Kisuke would worry about scribbling notes on one of their good days. She ignored the frown he gave her as she pushed the ink into the front of her black kimono. After sitting back against the tree again, she lifted her cup to her mouth and finished her sake. Kyoraku quickly refilled her cup and tried once again to offer Jushiro some. He shook his head; he and Kisuke preferred tea on days like this. Well, Jushiro preferred tea on any day. That was one of the reasons Yoruichi admired him so. Not a lot of men who were truly honorable could stay away from a jar of sake. Her golden eyes gazed at Kyoraku's face. He'd grown a beard so he could look older than his thirty years. Yoruichi laughed at the blush that flared in her friend's face when he noticed her staring.

"What did I do?" He asked slowly.

"Nothing. Shunsui, I'm just enjoying your beautiful face." Yoruichi replied happily.

Kisuke glared at Kyoraku before returning his attention back to the cup of tea in front of him. His index finger traced around the saucer it sat in. "So, the rumors about you two are true. Huh?"

Kyoraku chuckled as he leaned back into the afternoon shade. Kisuke could be as blind as a mole when it came to some things. His eyes settled on the frown Yoruichi was giving the man the only one she would probably actually ruin her honor for, in his opinion who had uttered the nonsense. His fingers slowly eased towards the brown sake container again. "My, my, you sure have some imagination, Kisuke-san."

The aforementioned finally got the courage to look up, but he deeply regretted the action when he saw the frown on Yoruichi's beautiful face. It wasn't more of the frown, but the look in her eyes that made his heart skip a beat. How could someone have one expression on their face and another in their eyes? He blinked away her image as he turned towards a confused Jushiro. "I was just asking."

Jushiro had no idea what was going on. He covered his mouth as a fit of coughs took him by surprise. His eyes darted to Yoruichi, as she was the first person to touch him. She was also the fastest of all of them, but none of them cared really. He waved her away with a smile as his coughing subsided. His eyes, however, remained on her face as she turned her attention back to the argument at hand. He sighed softly and wondered where life would lead them all. Mostly, he pondered if he really would live long enough to truly experience what life was.

"Why would you ask about something so demoralizing towards me, Kisuke?" Her voice was soft, but held an edge of anger.

Again, Kyoraku could not help but smile at his friend's stupid question. Sometimes, Yoruichi wasn't as perceptive as she liked for every one to think. He fell onto his side gently with his palm resting beneath his chin. If they continued to dance around this "thing" called their destiny, they would be in for a long night. He frowned at the distant look in Jushiro's eyes. The man rarely focus on reality long enough to know what was going on around him.

"Well, I ahhh… I don't know, Yoruichi."

"Stupid." She stood in one move and walked away from them with a sputtering of rude words. The wind opened her kimono slightly, and the inkbottle fell onto the ground, breaking into large chunks with black ink splattered everywhere. She didn't even notice the mistake as she walked away with her eyes closed and lips pressed together into a straight line.

Kisuke's left eye twitched as he stared at the mess his best friend had made of the only worthy gift he'd received the day before. He reached for the shards of ink covered glass, but Jushiro slapped his hand away. Kisuke glared at both of them before jumping to his feet and marching towards a figure standing alone in the center of the field beside their resting place. He stopped behind her loudly; making it obvious to her that he was there. His fingers itched to touch her shoulder, but he refrained himself until she turned to him. He gasped at the large smile he saw on her face. "What are you doing?" When she didn't answer, he sighed heavily as if he was tired beyond reason. Of course being in the twelfth squad sixth seat had its perks, but he mostly stayed in the lab with the captain. He probably hadn't slept for four days. "You broke my ink bottle."

Yoruichi continued to smile. She grabbed him around the waist as he blinked and fell forward. He should probably consider taking breaks in between those crazy experiments he and his captain did. Her fingers dug into his side, rousing him from the weak sleep he had drifted into.

"You wasted my ink." He sighed and pushed her away. His footsteps were slow and careful as he walked away from her.

The smile on her face slowly deteriorated until there was nothing but blankness. Her index and middle fingers pressed against her lips as she felt her heart crumbling into pieces. His ink? _He was wasting her heart._


	3. There Could be Nothing After This

The last emotion Yoruichi thought she would ever feel in reference to her best friend was fear. She did not fear him, per say, she feared what would become of him. Her heart and mind knew that Kisuke was a kind man with more strength than he'd ever bothered to really show anyone. She had watched him achieve bankai when they were younger; he'd wanted so badly to do something not done before. He also did it because he wanted to become captain of the twelfth division, a job he coveted. Yoruichi stood beside him when he achieved all that he dreamed he would do. She even went as far at times to achieve his dreams for him. For instance, she was the one who watched his experiments as he slept or went out to inspect his division. Also, she was the person to suggest that he begin his own research institution. If he was great enough to create things that changed the way shinigami traveled and lived, he was great enough to have his own research lab.

They stood glaring at one another in the center of said lab. It was pitch dark in the room aside from the glowing light from the neon hanging over one of the glass cases. The silence in the room stretched throughout the entire building. Yoruichi sighed heavily, releasing all the anger she'd felt towards him seconds earlier. Her eyes moved from familiar objects until they rested on his face again. Words she could not bring herself to say bubbled at the back of her mind. She turned away from him.

His hand was rough when it wrapped around her arm. "Yoruichi, I'm not asking you to give up anything. I'm telling you I'm leaving."

"Well, that doesn't mean I won't see you again. I visit Kuuaku all the time."

Kisuke's laughter echoed in the darkness. His hand slid down her arm to clasp her smaller hand into his. "I'm leaving soul society, Yoruichi."

A strangled gasp escaped her throat as his words sunk in. "You're leaving me?"

"No."

"I am here. If you leave, you are leaving me."

Kisuke sighed as if the entire world was sitting on his shoulders and he could no longer bear it. "I'm always with you, Yoru-chan."

Yoruichi took her hand away from him and walked until she stood behind a large desk with papers splayed everywhere. Had Kisuke done that when he came up with the stupid idea to leave everything he cared about behind? She laughed at the thought before looking up at him. "Kisuke, who was the first person you saw after passing out from starving when you were young? Who gave you the jewels from her neck and wrists just so you could live? Who brought you to Seireitei? Who helped you achieve this?" She raised her hands into the air. The smile on her face widened in response to the smirk on his face. "If I have been with you this long, millenniums, I would not leave you even in death."

Kisuke chuckled. He ran his hand through his hair slowly as a thought crossed him jumbled mind. "Yoru-chan. Your mother is really going to hate me after this one."

Yoruichi laughed and jumped across the table so that Kisuke caught her in his arms. She snuggled against him. "She never liked you to begin with. Besides, we'll be gone before the sun rises."


	4. You're Ever So Inviting

He wanted the world to live in peace free from hollows and all the other evil that lurked in the darkness. It was his people that died just so others could live better lives. Wasn't it his destiny to die doing the same as well? His midnight blue gaze danced from one face in the room to the other. Kurosaki and Renji were in a heated argument over something unimportant; Orihime spoke to Rukia, Chad, and Urahara about some strange food she'd managed to create the night before. He could tell from the expression on Sado's face that whatever it was did not fit well with his already fragile imagination. Ishida felt someone gazing at him, but everyone present was talking to someone else.

Yoruichi watched the Quincy because he was always the only person silent whenever they had enough free time to waste. He would sit amongst the others with his arms crossed, his ears open, and his eyes narrowed. She could tell from the way he gazed at Ichigo he was his closest friend, but it was the girl with the orange hair and large breast that kept his attention longest. She wondered if he had some sort of feelings for her that were too strong to be on the "friend" list. After glancing at Urahara, she crawled out of his lap. She could tell from the expression on Ishida's face that he hadn't known she was present in the room until that moment.

Ishida stared at the animal bewildered. He looked at a smiling Urahara and frowned. The man chuckled before turning his attention back to Orihime. Ishida watched the cat track out of the room slowly. He grumbled something along the lines of going to tell her off, but he followed her out of pure curiosity. His feet silently hit the floor as he walked behind her some feet with his lips pressed together. He stopped outside a room she went into. The door had automatically closed shut behind her. Should he go inside? He debated all the reasons going inside was wrong. Then he thought of all the reason going into the room would probably just end in him being horribly embarrassed. He stared at the door curiously. His curiosity got the best of him, for he eased the door open with his left hand.

Yoruichi crouched behind a stack of boxes with a deep frown on her face. The boy had followed her all the way into the stocking room? She smiled devilishly as a wonderful idea came to her. Slowly, she stepped from behind the boxes with her hands on her hips. When he looked at her brown feet and all the way up to her face, she smiled again. His eyes were the size of saucers. She flipped her purple hair over her shoulder and turned away from him, bending over to pick up a yellow kimono.

Ishida stumbled away form her, but he bumped into the door. He was shocked at the speed at which she locked the door and caught him around the waist all at once. Now, the nagging voice in his head that always warned him when he went on adventures with Kurosaki wanted to kick. Great! Here he was trapped in a room with a beautiful woman and all he could think about… Wait! Beautiful?! Urahara-san was going to kill him. He reached for the doorknob, but felt her warm hand instead. He gulped loudly and walked across the room so there was a reasonably amount of distance between them.

Yoruichi tossed the kimono onto one of the boxes as she stalked towards him. "I saw you watching Orihime. Do you like her?"

Her voice sounded so sweet and gentle he couldn't help but smile. He frowned at what she'd said. "Inoue?! She is missing too much information. No, I'm not."

Yoruichi smiled. Her nose was an inch away from his. "You just enjoy looking at beautiful women."

Her breath was warm against his lips. He looked at the door again, but realized he wasn't moving a muscle when her foot landed on top of his. To get away from her knowing gaze, he allowed his eyes to drop lower on her body. He regretted it the moment he saw her perfectly shaped chest. In an attempt to get rid of her, he knocked over a box. "Why are you doing this?"

"For the pride of the Quincy, you should be overjoyed to have a shinigami princess in your arms."

"I'd rather keep my arms." He raised his eyebrows when Yoruichi frowned at the comment. "You and the storeowner…"

"Are great friends." She kissed him roughly, but pulled away when she was overcome with laughter. Well, until you decide you're ready."

He breathed a sigh of relief as she stepped aside. His eyes scanned her body twice before he forced himself to leave the room. When he returned to the "party," everyone was arguing over the bountou. He blushed furiously at a sideways glance Urahara sent his way. He ducked behind Renji and quickly erased all that had happened from his mind. Well, all of it except for the last thing she'd said.


	5. Returning Empty Handed

Every sentence that came from her mouth was not meant to sound as if she had no regard to the feelings of the person she spoke with. She liked to prove her point and support it with plausible facts. When she argued with her father, she never yelled at him; she would speak to him in a reasonable voice that made the man wonder about her motives. When she argued with Kisuke or Jushiro or Kuuaku or Kyoraku, she kept her voice monotone and held a distant look in her eyes. Her friends knew her. If Yoruichi ever bothered to show any emotion aside from the blank expression she wore, it meant there would be trouble or the world was going into peril.

She enjoyed watching Kisuke move amongst his division as he wore a strange smile on his face. It was a smile she saw only when he engaged in a deep conversation with his pupils about some new project they worked on. She liked to sit in the corner of the research lab silently as they moved about running from one table to the next with a notebook and pen in hand. Yoruichi was rather enthralled by the running rate of Kisuke's lieutenant, a strange boy with blue hair and beautiful dark eyes. While he seemed normal on the outside, she could tell by his movement that he was a half bloomed flower that was probably poisonous. Whenever he offered her a smile during his little runs, she nodded to him in return blankly.

"Can't you take a break?" _For me? _She batted her eyelashes in a feminine way.

Kisuke's eyes widened in surprise, but he moved her aside to pick up a cylinder with glowing water inside it. "Yoru-chan, is there something you want to tell me?"

Yoruichi's face stretched into a smile. The action felt so normal to her she ignored all the glances from the officers scurrying around the room. They had never seen her smile once while she was in the lab. A girl with blond hair eased closer towards the door, but kept her eyes glued to the papers in her hand. Yoruichi's smile stretched wider on her face. Several of the officers excused themselves. "What do you mean?"

His eyes lifted from the cylinder at the sound of humor in her voice. After noticing some of his officers were missing, he grumbled about her being there. "You're scaring away my officers. Stop smiling."

"Kisuke…"

He bent his knees so that he was eye level with the cylinder. Not only was it glowing, but also it was beginning to foam. He smiled happily and reached for his notebook, which was too far out of reach. A dark hand slid the notebook and pen closer to his hand. He opened it and scribbled down notes that went on for nearly three pages. "Maybe later."

Yoruichi's beautiful smile disappeared slowly. Why had she built up the courage to disturb him in his lab anyway? She turned on her heels to leave, but could not help but sneak one last glance at the man she loved to see if he even noticed she was leaving. She muffled a growl and restrained herself from choking him to death. With the click of her tongue she walked out of the room.

"Yoruichi-sama, I've been waiting for you." Soi Fong bowed to Yoruichi lowly and stepped into line behind the woman.

Yoruichi pressed her lips together tightly to hide a frown itching to break the placidness of her face. She frowned slightly when Soi's soft hand touched her elbow. After blinking several times, she looked at the girl blushing beside her. "Yes?"

"Urahara-sama calls for you." Her voice was low.

Yoruichi looked beyond the girl's head to see Kisuke walking towards them briskly. Her heart pounded so loudly she was sure the girl standing beside her could hear it. She nodded to Soi and stood rooted in place as the girl walked ahead afar enough to be out of hearing range. Her stomach fluttered madly at the sight of the large smile on his face. He picked her up into his arms and twirled her around happily. Yoruichi stared at him wide eyed. "You couldn't have gotten drunk in the little time I've left you."

He held her tightly against him, knocking the wind from her lungs. He didn't notice the way her arm slipped around his neck in an adoring fashion, but he did notice the glare her lieutenant sent him before walking away from them a greater distance. "Yoruichi, I did it."

Yoruichi's heart dropped. The smile on her face was gone before she was completely out of his arms. "Did what, Kisuke?"

"You'll see at the meeting next month. It's amazing. All of this is because of you. Thank you." He pressed a light kiss on her cheek.

Her eyes narrowed as she watched him walk away faster than when he'd arrived. She turned to see Soi watching her with wide eyes. A smile graced her face again. As long as he was happy, nothing else mattered. Really.


	6. Casting Such a Thin Shadow

If someone ever asked Yoruichi who was the most distant person she'd ever had the pleasure of meeting, she would telling them Kuchiki Byakuya. She first met him when he was a small baby wrapped in fresh white linen. They were having a ceremony to welcome the baby into the most prestigious noble house of all Seireitei. Yoruichi had stood at the back of the room with her arms crossed over her chest and her head tilted to the right slightly. They had called her away from her job just so she could watch some brat kick and scream while people offered false compliments. She forced a smile when the boy's parents looked at the back of the room at her. They had better not be thinking she was going to watch him. She had not trained for centuries just to waste it away watching a snot nosed kid. Her feet were silent as she stood and eased out of the temple.

Kisuke stood at the bottom step with an armful of apples and a devious smile. She narrowed her eyes at him as she tramped down the stairs by twos. What had he been up to? Her hands rested on her hips; she stared at him pointedly, waiting for him to tell her what had happened.

"I won a bet against that guy around the corner. I used a barrel to fix the floor of his cart." His voice was so melodious. He happily lifted the apples into the air. "He offered me money, but I saw the apples on the ground from the barrel and took them instead."

She shook her head in reverie of the decisions her friend could make. On second thought, she was rather surprise he'd taken any payment at all. Her hand wrapped around one of the before she motioned for him to follow her. There was going to be a huge party at the Kuchiki mansion and there was no way in Hueco Mundo she was going to miss it. Her feet stopped in their tracks when something hard hit her in the back of the head. Her gold eyes watching in shock as a shiny red apple rolled past her. She turned to Kisuke with a smirk that made him laugh. They ran around the front of the temple.

"Yoruichi! What has gotten into you?" Her mother's voice was one that made her wince whenever she first heard it. The dark woman was shorter than her daughter, but just as beautiful.

She released Kisuke's collar and slowly turned to her parents, forcing a smile in the process. "I was waiting for the party to come from the temple."

Her father glanced at Kisuke with a look of distaste. "You really should get better friends."

Yoruichi opened her mouth to retort but closed it when she felt Kisuke's hand on her back. She nodded to her father, her smile never faltering. Her eyes followed their movements until they were out of distance so that she could curse every thing about them she could think of. Kisuke listened to her with dull eyes; he was accustomed to his best friend calling her parents worse things. They walked to the Kuchiki mansion so slowly that when they arrived most of the people had gone.

Her mother shoved her towards the cradle where the baby lay crying. She wrapped a tight arm around Yoruichi's slim waist and whispered to her. "They think this boy will be better than you, my Yoruichi. You will not let that happen." Her mother smiled widely at the woman standing behind the cradle. She touched Yoruichi's shoulder gently. "Yoruichi is so happy for the new member of your family."

The woman bowed. "I am also happy. I hope you two will be close friends."

Yoruichi's eyebrows rose. Her eyes darted to the blond man standing at the table with his apples still clutched in his arms. She laughed heartily when he sniffed a piece of meat and discreetly slid it back onto the platter. "Of course." She bowed awkwardly before prancing off to be with the only friend she really ever needed.

"Can we play tag now, Yoruichi-sama?" Byakuya stood on a large rock ten feet away from her with a knife in his hand.

Kisuke's laughter ruined the moment for she had a wonderful speech planned for the boy. She glared at her friend. "Of course." As always, she would allow him to get close enough to where he thought he had her, but she would disappear and be paces ahead of him.

"You should let him win once. He'll feel better." Kisuke snickered as the boy tramped down the rocks on a trail that led back to Seireitei. "What's he doing out here anyway?"

"Ah, his parents don't let him out much. You want to catch me?" Her eyes gleamed hungrily.

Kisuke closed his eyes and tilted his head towards the warmth of the midday sun. He sighed rather loudly. "Again, Kitty?" He rolled over onto his side and smirked. Yoruichi walked to him and crouched beside him with a similar smile on her face. She pressed her lips against his roughly before jumping out of his reach. "Why do you have to make me chase you?"

"It's part of the game!" She shouted over her shoulder.

Golden eyes stared into eyes the color of darkness. Brown fingers slowly dug through ebony hair. Yoruichi chuckled wildly at the look Byakuya wore as she made a complete mess of his hair. She flipped away from him quickly and waved her hands at him. "No need in trying to catch me. You never have. You never will." A pink tongue protruded from her mouth before she began to laugh again. She sat down on the table behind her with her legs crossed.

Byakuya slowly made his way to her. He wanted just once to touch that beautiful hair and to kiss those lips he was sure would be as soft as the silk kimono her wore. Ever since he'd join the Gotei 13 all he could think about was Yoruichi and that silly blond man running around carelessly. Well, Kisuke had to have some type of strength if he was a captain. His dark eyes inhaled the angles of her face; she was perfection.

"What are you thinking? You're probably wondering where Kisuke is. I am too." She fell back onto the table with a loud groan that made his stomach flip. Yoruichi maneuvered so that she lay on her side with her palm resting underneath her chin. She gazed at him curiously. "Well, what do you want?"

He wanted to tell her that he wanted her. Instead, he turned away from her with the distant look he'd mastered when he was younger. His voice was as cold as he could make when he replied to her. "You can't give me anything I want." He inhaled slowly at the feel of her arms around his waist.

Yoruichi chuckled in his ear softly. Her lips grazed his jaw as she purred into his ear, "I can give you all that you want." Her hands moved from his shoulder down the front of his chest to his torso where she wrapped her arms around him. Hesitantly, she kissed him on the neck and tightened her grip on him. Hadn't her parents told her he would more than likely someday become her husband? She nuzzled her face into the warm spicy scent of his black hair.

Byakuya closed his eyes and reveled in the nearness of her. He could feel the press of her soft breasts against his back. The thought of her _wanting_ to be that close to him made him want to do crazy things. He stepped away from her; his resolve had finally sunken in. He did not want a woman who tramped around all of Seireitei with trash from rukongai. He looked at the confused expression she wore. "I don't want you."

Yoruichi nodded solemnly as she sat down on the table. When she looked up he was gone. She released a great sigh of relief that caught in her throat at the site of Kisuke peeping from behind the dressing shades. Loud laughter bubbled in both their stomachs and rolled out into the night air. She pressed her face into his neck as he wrapped his arms around her. What did _she _need with Byakuya anyway?


	7. Moving for the Sake of Motion

Yoruichi liked to speak to Kyoraku on Friday mornings. Fridays were the days after he got heavily drunk and could not remember the night before. Even before he became a captain, the boy for he and she were the same age and she could never see him as anything but would still attempt to get the attention of girls around him. While he succeeded on Thursday nights, he would never actually recall the events the following day. He would be well into depression until Kisuke showed up to remind him in a whimsical voice of how he had terrorized the women the night before. Kyoraku's face would light up. That is, until Yoruichi added her lie.

Kyoraku lounged underneath a blossoming tree with a book in his left hand and a cup in his right. His eyes darted between the two people sitting in front of him. He hated to ask them the question he knew they were waiting for. After closing the book and sitting his drink aside, he folded his arms over his chest. "Well, what happened?"

"You weren't drunk enough to forget last night." Jushiro stared at his friend with accusing eyes. Well, maybe he was trying to catch one of them in a trap. He'd just ruined it. He shrugged dismissively before taking up his on book.

Yoruichi yawned rather loudly behind him. She rested her hand behind her head. Kyoraku wasn't so smart; it was Jushiro who was too smart for his own damn good. Her laughter interrupted the thoughts of the two men. Kisuke approached them dressed in a green kimono, stilted getas, and face paint. He collapsed on the ground beside Jushiro with his hand pressed against his forehead. Yoruichi clutched her stomach at the tightening of the muscles from all her laughter.

Kyoraku raised his eyebrows. "What happened to you?"

"I went home with the woman Yoruichi took you away from." Kisuke sighed loudly. "She took all my underclothes. So, I had to walk back here like this."

She rolled over into her stomach as the laughter continued to shake her into fits. Slowly, she crawled towards her best friend and wiped his face with the sleeve of her jacket. A blush crept into her face when she noticed Jushiro's eyes on her. She slapped Kisuke's wandering hand away from her cheek. "Sorry, perhaps I should take better care of you then."

Kisuke stood. "I have to go change." He started to walk off, but Kyoraku jumped to his feet and followed him at close range. He wanted to tell Kisuke about the accident he'd had in his room when he'd gone in there earlier in search of his shirt. Yoruichi wondered why Kyoraku's shirt would be in Kisuke's room anyway, but she didn't ask. She suddenly remembered they'd played cards and drank the night before. Why was she the one who was suddenly forgetting things? Her eyes strayed to the man sitting across from her with his legs crossed underneath him as he read silently. "Jushiro-san, how do you know Kyoraku wasn't really drunk last night?"

Jushiro looked up from his book with a smile. Yoruichi blushed and looked down at the grass moving in the soft breeze. She looked back into his face just as he replied. "He didn't drink. He planned on getting you and Kisuke drunk enough to make you think you had sex together."

Yoruichi frowned. "Kisuke and I sleep together anyway."

"Yes, but…sleeping and sex are not the same." He blushed and looked down at the book again.

"What?" She blinked at him impatiently.

"Everyone was drunk but Kyoraku. The party cleared out with us three left in Kisuke's room."

"How do you remember all of this?" Her voice rose at the end of the question.

The book in his hand landed on the ground softly. He leaned towards her on the palm of his hands. "Because I would never forget the way your skin feels or tastes." He chuckled at the look of disbelief on her face. He crawled towards her slowly until his face was less than an inch from hers. His breath was warm against her against. "Remember? You said you could never quite sit still when you had that much sake in your veins." His lips covered hers hungrily. His hand touched the smooth skin of her cheek gently as he deepened the kiss, brushing tongues with her.

Yoruichi pulled him on top her. Her head felt light at the feel of his lips on her neck and collarbone. She dug her fingers into his hair deep enough so that they touched his scalp. "I have no sake now." He looked at her questioningly. She pressed their lips together again and allowed him to lie between her thighs. " I feel like moving."

**A/N: What can I say? I'm a sucker for Yoruichi and Ukitake pairings.**


	8. Writing on the Walls

Yoruichi looked at choosing her drink the way she looked at choosing her friends. While most of them were strong, she kept the most divers ones closest to her. Kisuke was the most intelligent with a hint of strength; thus, she always thought of him when she drank wine. Jushiro was wise and strong with a hint of wildness, but not so much that you could see it on the surface; she compared him to fresh, unaltered tea. Kyoraku was wild and had as much strength as her other friends. She did not hang around with him just for the sake of having someone to be around. She dealt with him because he was what every man was, but not afraid to show himself. So, she easily identified his character to the drink he loved so much: sake. It was her youngest friend who reminded her of the drink she loved so much. Soi Fong reminded her of water. Like water, Soi was pure and strong without reeking havoc on people who came into contact with her.

It was her water that she thought about the moment her third in command told her Urahara Kisuke had been judged and exiled from Seireitei. She had remained seated for a few minutes thinking about the girl when she felt Urahara's reiatsu approaching. Usually, he walked around with his reiatsu hidden. Her body went rigid at the defeated look her best friend wore as he trudged into her office. He dropped into a sitting position in front of her with his lips pressed together.

"I ruin everything. My life was great here." His voice was filled with emotion.

Yoruichi motioned for the man outside her room to close the door and leave. She turned her eyes back to her friend. "Kisuke does what he believes is best. He works to help others and achieve unimaginable things. It not a ruined life when one has dreams."

He smiled. "Like your father said, I was reaching for stars. All I got instead was clouds."

"Still a great feat." She wrapped her arms around him tightly. "Where exactly are you going?"

"I'm going to the human world. There, I could be of use."

Yoruichi frowned. "Ahh. Well, good luck." She chewed on her lower lip in response to the great disappointment she saw in his eyes. "I have things to do here, Kisuke."

He nodded. He kissed her on the cheek before leaving. Yoruichi stretched out on the floor with her eyes on the ceiling. She did not look at the girl coming into the room. Soi stood attentive in front of the door with her eyes narrowed at the woman lying immobile on the floor. Had Urahara killed her? She breathed a sigh of relief when Yoruichi moved back to her seat. Perhaps Urahara had killed, she thought, but not in the physical sense. She could tell from the tension on her senpai's face that she was struggling against whatever it was he had said to her.

"Soi, could you go tell number three to come to my office?" Yoruichi looked at the girl with a forced smile. She pressed her lips together when the girl disappeared out of the room. Soi would not find the third in command until the following morning; Yoruichi had sent the man to rukongai to wake Kuuaku the moment he'd told her about Kisuke's punishment. She pulled on her orange jacket and glanced at her office one last time.

Kisuke sat at the table dressed in a green shirt and green pants with a hideous hat on he'd bought from a woman selling things on the street. He clicked open the fan in his hand and covered his face as he told Yoruichi all he knew of the recent events in Seireitei. Soi Fong had taken her place as Commander in Special Corps. He strange lieutenant had succeeded him. Byakuya had finally become a captain. He stared longing at the dark woman sitting across from him with her arms crossed her chest and her eyebrows furrowed. He poured her a drink and pushed the cup towards her. She smiled gingerly at the water shimmering up at her. She chuckled and lifted the cup to her mouth. It was wine.


	9. Everyone Looks so Good from Here

**A/N: I don't own Bleach or anything affiliated with it This disclaimer applies to the remaining stories as well. Eh? Let that also apply to Underoath. Thanks.**

The first time it happened, he was drunk. There had been a party to celebrate Kaien's ascension as a member of the Gotei 13. They sat in a drinking house, the eight of them, with their cups of sake raised and big smiles on their faces. The table was the largest one the owner could find; he'd tried his hardest to get the largest table for a group with members from three of the great five nobles families. Yoruichi, Kuuaku, Kaien, and Byakuya had glared at the man profusely after basically announcing who they were. As if the stares from the other customers weren't enough already. Yoruichi knew the only reason Byakuya was there was because of her and the fact that Kaien was his friend. Kisuke, Isshin, Kyoraku, and Jushiro joined them at their table.

She knew he rarely drank. So, it was more than surprising to her to see Jushiro sitting next to Kyoraku with his cup raised every time his friend poured himself a refill. Maybe he finally wanted to experience something in life other than fear of whether or not he would wake up the following morning. She drank only one cup of sake, but noticed Kuuaku would finish her own cup then take up hers. Her golden eyes stared pointedly at the only female friend she had. She wondered if Kuuaku could beat Kyoraku drinking. Her laughter at the thought quieted the ruckus at the table for a few seconds. She rolled her eyes at the lingering stare Kisuke gave her before turning his attention back to Byakuya. They all must have been drunk in order for what was going on to be happening. Kisuke did not like Byakuya and vice versa. Kyoraku was lounging back in his chair chatting up a woman sitting behind him; she had short blond hair and a chubby face. Kuuaku, Jushiro, and Kaien were debating whether or not Seireitei would still exist in two millenniums.

She was the only person quiet at the table. Her eyes widened at the stare Jushiro gave her before he asked for her opinion on the matter. Her thoughts were that the topic was too trivial to have even survived for the past hour as it was, but she just shrugged and said something about death. The three people gaped at her bewildered before breaking into loud laughter. A smile spread her lips as she realized what she'd said actually had made no sense. And here she was the only sober person at the table. She shook her head gently before standing and walking towards the door. No one even noticed that she was leaving.

The air was cold against her skin as she stood with her cloak clutched tightly against her frame. The front of the building smelled thickly of sake and rice. She yawned rather loudly before glancing back into the building at her friends huddled around the table. She wasn't tired, but she was bored beyond fashion. She kicked at a large stone as she fixed the button on her cloak in place. Her feet made soft crunching noise with each step she took away from the building. How could she just walk away from spending time with her friends? Suddenly, she stopped where she stood and turned around slowly. Someone was watching her.

Jushiro stood in front of the door with a surprised expression. His long white hair was pulled away from his face into a neat ponytail. He stumbled towards her with a crooked smile and slapped her on the shoulder rather harder than he had meant to. His words slurred slightly as he mumbled a loud apology to her. It was probably after standing in the cold for fifteen minutes of silence did he realize why he'd come out in the first place.

"Where are you going? Kisuke was looking for you." He said the words slowly.

"Really?"

A large smile made his face so beautiful it was almost angelic. "No, but I thought that would get you back inside if I said it."

Yoruichi chuckled. She shook her head gently to clear away conflicting thoughts. "You're silly."

He kept up pace with her as she walked down the street with her golden eyes on nothing in particular. His breath came to him quickly, forcing him to slow down whenever she really sped up. Yoruichi finally noticed that he still walked with her but some paces behind. She turned to him with a smile she reserved for all the people she loved. Her arm slid around his shoulder as they continued to walk to nowhere in the dark.

She stopped in her tracks when she felt his lips on her cheek. Her first idea was that perhaps he had fallen asleep and she hadn't taken notice of it. Of course, that idea was incorrect; Yoruichi knew Jushiro snored rather loudly in his sleep. She looked down at him out the corner of her eye in surprise. His lips grazed her cheek again before he quickly planted them on top of her own lips. Her eyes widened in shock. Her feet moved back with each step forward he took. She soon found herself pressed against the wall of an abandoned house. Her shoulder slowly relaxed and her mouth opened fully for him. His tongue slid beyond her lips to graze hers. Her arms wrapped around his shoulder tightly in response to the warmth developing in the pit of her stomach.

Minutes passed. It took the crunching of rocks in the distance to pull the two away from one another. Yoruichi rested against Jushiro's easily with her ear pressed against his chest so she could hear the rapid beating of his heart. Her fingers dug into the softness of the kimono he wore. She was no longer feeling that she would freeze at any moment. His index finger tilted her chin upward and his mouth took hers again. The warmth in her stomach intensified until she felt a tingling she had never known before. His hand touched her face, her hair, her neck, and finally rested on her hips.

When he pulled away from her to gaze into her eyes, her breath caught in her throat. This was Jushiro! Jushiro was the one who was always distant with her. Jushiro was the one who always spoke with honor and wisdom and a sense of awareness. Jushiro was the one who was angriest with her when she told him about her dirty deeds with Kisuke in the library or in empty classrooms. He was the one who was always sick, but never complaining about life. He also was the one who readily admitted he would never fall in love.

Yoruichi's finger touched her lower lip. Her eyes searched his face for some hint that what had happened had been a mistake. He stepped towards her again, his eyes more clear than any moment before that. He opened his mouth to speak, but all he could do was pull him against her again and kiss her. Yoruichi moaned into his mouth and realized with a jolt that she had not breathed a moment between when he stopped kissing her and she he started back. He kissed her on the neck softly and pressed his face into her chest. Yoruichi dug her fingers into his hair and smiled down at the back of his head happily. Events like those made life worth living.

**A/N: groans Another Yoruichi and Ukitake pairing? I just enjoy the idea of him getting drunk. LOL**


	10. To Whom it may Concern

The boy Kisuke had entrusted to her was not at all ready for what lay ahead of him. She mentally cursed her friend as she ran towards the tower with a deep frown on her face. They boy had trained for several days and thought he could take on Kuchiki Byakuya. She had to admit, the poor kid had guts. She jumped towards the bridge just as Byakuya called forth his shikai. The white cloth she extended wrapped around the sword tightly. She smiled at her old friend as she crouched in front of him. Her eyes searched for a familiar reiatsu she felt behind her. Jushiro smiled at her widely. Same as always. She snatched her cloth away from Byakuya's sword and moved towards the boy.

When Byakuya blocked her way, she was not surprised; she had had an inkling it would not be as easy as she'd hoped. She'd always wanted him to be someone great as he deserved, but she would cut his time short if he got in the way of her plans. She leapt into the air with a smirk and dodged his attack. "You'll never catch me, Little Byakuya." She knew how much he'd grown to love the nickname. Her laughter rang in the air as she evaded another one of his attacks. She moved quickly to a place behind him.

He smirked and brought his sword down on her. "You'll never escape me with such slow moves."

Yoruichi clutched the boy over her shoulder and chuckled as she stood behind him. She jumped onto the railing of the bridge. "And you will never catch me with such slow moves." She knew he might follow them and that would lead to her having to defeat him. More than anything, she wanted to avoid fights with any of her old friends. Her gold eyes darted to Jushiro standing placidly away from them with a mesmerized gaze on his face; he was probably overjoyed to see her and didn't care whether she took the boy or not. She looked at the other two fools standing on the bridge and then back to Jushiro. A silent agreement passed between them; he would not let harm come to them. "Give me three days and then you can fight him. Three days."

"You have three days then." His voice more distant and cold than it had ever been towards her.

She hoped he wasn't jealous over a little boy coming between them. She would always love him and remember the sweet times they had together when she resided there, but she had to help Kisuke save the world. Hadn't Byakuya learned by now that her soul burned brightest when it was next to Kisuke's? She wanted to look back at him before she moved, but she didn't. She simply pushed all lingering thoughts of him away.

She jumped into the air and soared down to the ground where she landed and ran ahead. When she made it to the secret cave she and Kisuke had trained so often when they were younger, she placed her new student on the ground so she could catch her breath. Disappointment settled in her mind as she thought about how she'd gotten slower over the past century. Damn Kisuke. She laughed as she adjusted the boy's body position.

When he achieved bankai, she helped him train using it. He fought her in a way that was sloppy and filled with desperation. She taught him how to control his emotion and the extra speed he'd attained by helping him master shunpo. Yoruichi knew it still might not be enough to defeat Byakuya, but she had hopes it would be. She marveled at the site of the redhead boy when he broke into their sanctuary. At first she wanted to rip him to shreds, but he convinced her he was there only to practice with his own bankai. She nodded and stood away from them with a blank expression on her face. She'd watched well over three men achieve their bankai already, what was one more? She had as much time as needed to watch the two boys train so they could save someone they held dear.

Yoruichi smiled when Ichigo and Renji began fighting one another playfully. She knew how love could make people abandon even the most promising things in life. For anyone who wanted to know why she had chosen to help the boy in front of her, she would tell him or her one word that meant the entire world to her. Love.

**A/N: Yoruichi and Kisuke is the most admirable pairing ever.**


	11. Define the Great Line

**Totally all my opinion**Yourichi is one of the best characters in Bleach. I really congratulate Mr. Kite on coming up with a character so beautiful and free spirited. There really isn't anyone like her. Anyway, this is just ten sentences why Yoruichi has "defined the great line" between herself and the other characters in Bleach.

1) Yoruichi was born into nobility amongst only five other houses.

2) Yoruichi disregarded said nobility for her own happiness.

3) Yoruichi was willing to give up her future life of riches and grand parties for someone who had almost nothing.

4) She trains others in hope that they too will achieve some of the things she's done.

5) Yoruichi wants to save the world.

6) She fights with her fists and feet, allowing her to be just as deadly, if not deadlier, as any foe with a zanpakuto.

7) Yoruichi believes in a justice she and Kisuke created on their own as they aged together.

8) Yoruichi never cared if it seemed selfish when she abandoned her old friends, but she just couldn't see how having them could equal to one Kisuke.

9) She is the goddess of flash.

10) Yoruichi can turn into a cat.

**A/N: You've probably noticed that I worship Yoruichi. Peace **


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